West End Theatre between the Wars

Costume design for Saint Joan

This stunning costume design was created by Charles Ricketts for Tremouille in the first performance of George Bernard Shaw's play Saint Joan in 1924.

There were no stage design courses in the early 20th century and, like many stage designers at this time, Ricketts was an artist, skilled in many aspects of painting and engraving. For him, stage designing was a relaxation. He first took it up at the age of 40 as something he did without payment for friends like Harley Granville Barker, Sybil Thorndike or Lillah McCarthy. He believed that stage designers should aim at a 'beautiful simplicity' and the elimination of fussy detail.

This design shows how brilliantly he succeeded. The shape of the costume is simple, the period suggested in the headdress with its scalloped edging. The bold over-all design gives a sense of richness and power, while the contrast of the black and gold costume with the brilliant blue headdress is masterly.

Caricature of Ernest Thesiger and Sybil Thorndike in St Joan

This cartoon appeared in The Saturday Review in 1924 as part of a theatrical series of 'dramatis personae' (literally meaning people of the drama, but used to refer to the cast of characters in a play).

Sybil Thorndike was one of the most versatile of 20th century actresses. She began her career with Annie Horniman's company in Manchester, before joining the Old Vic company in 1914. There she helped to establish the theatre's name as the home of Shakespeare, and proved herself adept in both classical and modern, tragic and comic roles, even some men's parts: she played an acclaimed Fool in King Lear.

In 1924, she created the title role in George Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan at the New Theatre. Critics hailed the play as 'a momentous achievement' with a simplicity that is 'the simplicity of supreme genius', and Thorndike's performance as 'stupendous'. The Daily Mail thought her depiction of the girl inspired by religious visions to lead the French army 'one of the great performances of our time'.

Alec Guinness as Dr Simpson

Alec Guinness is pictured here in the role of the feisty Dr Simpson, the Edinburgh doctor who discovered chloroform, in the 1949 production of The Human Touch. The play was popular and even Queen Mary came to see the show at the Savoy Theatre in London, though some critics felt that Guinness' personality was too whimsical to convey Dr Simpson's fiery fanaticism.

This performance certainly did not harm Guinness's career and he went on to appear in many Shakespearean and other classical roles as well as in films and on television, playing Herbert Pocket in David Lean's Great Expectations as well as eight members of the same family in Hearts. He later went on to star as George Smiley in the television series Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and as Obi Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars films.

Where The Rainbow Ends

Where the Rainbow Ends was a Christmas children's play by Clifford Mills and John Ramsey, first produced in 1911 by Charles Hawtrey.

The play was not only aimed at young people, it featured 40 children in the cast. The actress Italia Conti had gained a reputation for working with children and was asked to train the underage company (which included a 12 year old Noël Coward). Where the Rainbow Ends was such a success that it led to Italia establishing regular classes to teach dancing, singing, acting and elocution. These quickly grew into a performing arts school that is still going strong and has boasted many famous names among its students, including film star Jack Hawkins (who was in this 1922 production at the Holborn Empire), Leslie Ash, Wendy Richard, Naomi Campbell and Clive Dunn.

John Gielgud in Richard II

This is a scene from Richard II at the Queen's Theatre in 1937, with John Gielgud as Richard and Peggy Ashcroft as the Queen. It was unusual to see Shakespeare in the West End as producers were not convinced that the plays would attract audiences and were reluctant to take financial risks.

Gielgud had been working with the Old Vic company who were staging affordable, cheaply mounted productions and he had recently starred as Hamlet on Broadway. His status as a matinee idol gave him sufficient clout to lease the Queen's Theatre for a season. He intended to develop his ideas about Shakespeare and other classics with a West End budget. He began the season with this production of Richard II which he directed himself in the style of the actor-managers of the 18th and 19th centuries (although without making the play into a star vehicle for himself, as some of his predecessors had).

Printed flyer for Cavalcade

Although Nöel Coward felt that the first night performance of Cavalcade in 1931 was shaky, the critics loved it. Some of the critical comments 'astounding', 'magnificent' and 'breath-taking' were incorporated into the advertising flyer. Yet Coward felt that the show had been misinterpreted. Far from being a jingoistic celebration of England, it was not uncritical, and used visual irony similar to that Joan Littlewood later incorporated into her production Oh, What a Lovely War. Cavalcade was produced at the time of a General Election and this added to the sense that Coward had written a rousing patriotic play. It aroused such nationalistic fervour that when King George V and Queen Mary came to see it, the audience spontaneously burst into the national anthem and the King was forced to make two appearances in the Royal Box to acknowledge the applause!

To get away from the frenzied atmosphere, Coward fled England for South America.

Where The Rainbow Ends at the Holborn Empire

Where the Rainbow Ends was a Christmas children's play by Clifford Mills and John Ramsey, first produced in 1911 by Charles Hawtrey.

The play was not only aimed at young people, it featured 40 children in the cast. The actress Italia Conti had gained a reputation for working with children and was asked to train the underage company (which included a 12 year old Noël Coward). Where the Rainbow Ends was such a success that it led to Italia establishing regular classes to teach dancing, singing, acting and elocution. These quickly grew into a performing arts school that is still going strong and has boasted many famous names among its students, including film star Jack Hawkins (who was in this 1922 production at the Holborn Empire), Leslie Ash, Wendy Richard, Naomi Campbell and Clive Dunn.

Ernest Thesiger and Fay Compton in The Circle

Somerset Maugham's play The Circle was first performed at the Haymarket Theatre in 1921.

Maugham was a playwright, novelist, and short-story writer who, in 1908, scored the theatrical triumph of having four plays running in London at once. The Circle was an elegant and hilarious social satire, with a serious central situation, explored with Maugham's characteristic shrewd understanding of human nature. Arnold Champion-Cheney will never forgive his mother. 30 years before, in a sea of scandal, Lady Kitty abandoned her son when she ran away with Lord Porteous, the man she loved. Now she returns to face the husband and son she left behind and meet her daughter-in-law, Elizabeth, a young wife confronting the same dilemma.

Here are Ernest Thesiger as Arnold and Fay Compton as Elizabeth in the original production. Compton came from a theatrical family, members of which are still prominent in the acting profession (actor Alan Howard is a relation). Thesiger, as well as having a long and diverse acting career, was one of the world's greatest experts in petite point embroidery.

Terence Rattigan

Terence Rattigan (1911-1977), photographer Anthony Crickmay, United Kingdom, about 1971